Keewaytinook Internet High School (KIHS)
PILOT PROJECT - NATIVE STUDIES

9. HINTS FOR IMPROVING KEYBOARDING SKILLS

WHY DO WE NEED TO DO KEYBOARDING?

If we are going to take a course online, we have to read messages and write messages.
If we don't write messages, - there will be nothing for anybody to read.
If we are going to write lots of messages, and submit our homework, we have to type on a keyboard quickly, - or we will spend too much time writing, and will not have the time to do research or thinking about what we want to say.

If we are already fast on the keyboard, we can always increase our speed.
If we do not know how to type using all 10 fingers, - today is a good time to learn.

Keyboarding is not a skill that can be learned in one day.
But if we spend a few minutes in practicing keyboarding EVERY day, it soon becomes as valuable skill as driving a car. Our fingers transport us quickly to the Internet, and around the world. Assignments take less time to complete, and we can focus on submitting our best work, rather than struggling just to get it there!!!!

Here are some hints to watch for as we start formal keyboarding.

1. Table Height
   In many communities, computer keyboards are on standard 36" tables and people use whatever chair is available. This means that our hands are up too high (like a puppy on its hind legs). It is hard to gain speed in keyboarding if the keyboard is too high.
   
   Let's be creative in solving this problem. Get a desk from a junior grade but use a regular chair. Or sit on a couple of text books (with teacher's permission.)
   
   When our hands are on the keyboard, they should be about the height of our waist.
   
   
2. Sit Tall
   Even though it is not cool to "sit up straight," it is very important when we are keyboarding. As we start to take courses on line, we will be spending many hours on the keyboard. If we slouch while reading the screen or sending messages, we will get back ache which can be a life long problem.
   
   
3. Feet Flat Floor
   When drafting or sending messages, or practicing keyboarding, we need to keep our feet flat on the floor. Our keyboarding speed will increase.
   
   
4. Palms off
   When we are keyboarding, we need to keep the palms of our hands off the keyboard. This means that we move our whole hand and arm (and not just our fingers) when we are keyboarding. This helps prevent a sickness something like arthritis where our finger joints become very painful.
   
   
5. Fingers on home keys
   When we start keyboarding, we keep the ends of our 8 fingers gently resting on the home keys. For the left hand the home keys are a,s,d,f. For the right hand, they are j,k,l and ; Our thumbs rest on the space bar.
   
   
6. Where To Look
   When we are keyboarding, we need to look at either:
   1. the screen; or
   2. whatever is sitting to the left or right of the computer.
   Once in a while, we check our friends out to see if they are sitting up straight.
   
   We avoid watching our fingers and looking for the right key on the keyboard. That way, we can cruise the Internet or key in a hand written draft assignment faster.
   
   
7. Keyboarding stretches.
   Before signing on to K-Net for the day, we warm up by doing 10 -15 minutes of practice in the keyboarding program. It is like doing stretches before playing hockey. By doing keyboarding practice daily, we increase your speed and then we can focus more on what we are saying to our online classmates, rather than worrying about our keyboarding skills.
   
   (We save the keyboarding games for a fun activity when we have finished our work.)
   
   
8. Progress
   At least one day a week, (Friday) we record our speed and progress on a chart.

DOING IT!!
Let's quietly, on our own, find a keyboarding soul buddy or two in our classroom. When required, we gently, quietly remind our soul buddy to:

1. sit tall;
2. keep feet flat on the floor,
3. keep eyes off the keys;
4. keep wrists off the keyboard;
5. keep fingers resting lightly on the home keys.
6. keep on task!!!

Keep smiling. We will all be winners at keyboarding very soon!!!!!!!